The Princess of Wales proved that textiles are in the family ‘genes’ as she helped finish off a special pair of trousers made for her husband, Prince William.
Catherine, 44, was warmly welcomed to Hiut Denim, a family-owned company based in Cardigan, Wales, as part of a royal away to highlight the flourishing Welsh textiles industry.
Her passion to highlight British manufacturing is in part inspired by her own family history: her father’s ancestors owned William Lupton & Co, a woollen merchant and manufacturer based in Leeds.
Hiut designs and manufactures premium jeans entirely in the UK, and the princess chatted with three trainees who took her to a sewing machine where she was given the chance to sew the label into a pair of jeans made specially for Prince William.
She was shown how the firm sews a ‘Made in Wales’ label inside the back of every pair of jeans and said: ‘I love the label Made in Wales. You can really see the handcraft and care taken.’
The princess successfully controlled the pedal of the machinery, despite wearing high heels. And when she finished the label she held William’s finished jeans, which would normally cost £245, up proudly and said ‘He will love them’.
Phoebe Phillips, 31, a trainee from Cardigan who showed Kate how to work the machine, said afterwards: ‘She was good. She had a lot of control. She was wearing high heels but there wasn’t any issue with the pedal.’
Earlier, Catherine had been welcomed to the factory by an English cocker spaniel, seven-year-old Barney, who was, appropriately, wearing a denim bow tie.
The Princess of Wales sews a Made in Wales tag onto a pair of jeans during a visit to Hiut Deni
Kate appeared to have an anxious look on her face as she gets stuck in with some sewing
The Princess of Wales is shown an article of clothing during a visit to Hiut Denim, a family-owned company based in Cardigan
The Princess of Wales meets the Hiut Denim factor dog Barney
The princess bent down to stroke the pet and was heard telling the staff she has the same breed of dog at home, Orla
The Princess of Wales is shown how to cut material during a visit to Hiut Denim
After being shown the ropes, the Princess had a go at cutting the material herself
The Princess of Wales with a master cutter during a visit to Hiut Denim
Johann Von Loeper, Hiut’s CEO, said: ‘This is our factory dog.’
The princess bent down to stroke the pet and was heard telling the staff she has the same breed of dog at home, Orla.
She also confirmed the Daily Mail’s recent exclusive that the Wales family had decided to keep a puppy from the litter Orla recently had, saying: ‘You are lovely! We have the same breed of dog.
‘So we’ve got a little puppy, he’s only eight months, and Orla’s five.’
The princess was given a 45-minute tour of the factory during which she was also handed a pair of scissors and asked to begin cutting denim for a new pair of jeans.
She cut slowly then said: ‘My most adventurous, was a pair of pyjamas, but I don’t know where they are now.’
Speaking to the design team, Catherine asked: ‘Do you do a variety and big range of different denim? How many different cuts and designs have you got currently as part of the collection?’
She was told the jeans are all named after grandparents of staff members, remarking: ‘It’s so lovely, I love the storytelling women through the business.’
Posing for a group photo the princess, who wore green trousers and an eye-catching 1960s vintage Welsh wool coat, joked: ‘I feel like I should have worn a pair of jeans.’
Dozens of locals waited outside to greet the princess as she left the factory, with several well-wishers asking the famous visitor for a selfie, including Kai Owen, 15.
He said: ‘I thought I would never see her again so thought I might as well. I will post it on Instagram, she was very nice in the interaction I had.’